History

History of the Notary Foundation of BC

The Notary Foundation of British Columbia was established under the Notaries Act Chapter 334 in July of 1985. The Foundation is the recipient of the interest which BC Credit Unions, Canadian chartered Banks and Trust Companies must pay on clients’ funds when they are held in trust by a BC Notary Public.

The Notary Foundation receives and distributes the funds earned each year in accordance with its legislated mandate and in accordance with the goals and objectives set by the Board of Governors. Most of the money is paid to the Legal Services Society, specifically to provide Legal Aid in the province. In addition, the Notary Foundation makes funds available to The Society of Notaries Public of BC to assist them in the education of members, applicants for membership, and the general public.

The Notary Foundation provides Grants to other British Columbia organizations in the following areas:

Legal Education

Legal Research

Law Libraries

In addition to Grants, the Notary Foundation funds numerous scholarships and bursaries each year for individuals attending university and colleges who are taking certain law-related courses.

The success of the foundations is based upon the cooperation of financial institutions that strive to ensure that a reasonable interest is paid on the funds held in Notaries' and lawyers' trust accounts. Substantial funds are created that allow the foundations to support the good work of a many community organizations and to assist, in a major way, with the necessary funding for Legal Aid in our province.

The Foundations funds and activities are administer by a Board of Governors consisting of eleven members, three appointed by the Attorney General of British Columbia and eight appointed by the Directors of the Society of Notaries Public of British Columbia.

The Governors meet on a regular basis to review grant applications and to review the banking arrangements with our financial partners and to review the general administration of the Foundations assets including the investment of funds which is governed by a comprehensive investment policy that has a mandate to first protect the capital and secondly to create a return on investment.

The Foundation accepts grant applications from organizations that meet the objectives and the legislated mandate of the Notary Foundation however the BC Notary Foundation is a project Funder and is not generally a core funder. All organizations that receive a grant must report to the Foundation and indicted the work they are doing is completed in accordance with their grant application.

The Foundation is managed by the Executive Officer – Mr. G.W.Wayne Braid.